Cloti Week 2018
by sanctum-c
Summary: Prompt fills for Cloti Week on Tumblr. Latest: Visiting the Beach
1. Cookout

Yuffie groaned, stumbled out of the buggy and flopped to the ground in what little shade the vehicle offered. Aeris hurried to the front, skirt held up with one hand, the other fumbling the hood open. She staggered back immediately, the air above the engine rippling. "That's going to need some time." She peered closer. "Hopefully we caught it before it overheated too badly."

"Not going to cool easily in this." Sweat beaded on Tifa's forehead. They were on the edge of the Corel desert, the towering form of the Gold Saucer in the distance, the sun beating down on them. The remainder of their companions struggled out of the vehicle, the thick funk of sweat drifting from the open doorway. A breeze would be nice. Or some water. Or shade. The grasslands began perhaps a mile or two distant; not bad to walk, but what about after? No water sources in sight.

"The beach was better than this." Aeris undid another button at the top of her dress and fanned her face. She fidgeted and swatted at her skirt, bunching it up at one side to expose more of her legs. One of the few times when Tifa's short skirt came in handy. But she was a child of the mountains; all this heat was obnoxious. At least she seemed to be coping better than most of the others. Nanaki sprawled in the shadow beneath the buggy, his tail lying limp beside him. At least his flame did not seem to emit any more heat than he did. Barret sat beside the buggy, gazing back to the remnants of Corel. Cait Sith still sat inside - robots were fine in this weather. And Cloud- Cloud also seemed fine.

"How are you not sweating?"

He blinked at Tifa and scratched at his head with faint embarrassment. "Yeah," Barret put in with a frown. "Some kind of SOLDIER trick? No one else I know could have tracked out of that prison, gone back and then won a chocobo race and not be even a little sweaty."

"I dunno." Cloud shrugged. "Guess it must be."

"This is one of those rare times I wish I was a SOLDIER," Yuffie muttered. "Then I could take on the company from within in and-" She groaned. "Too hot. You could fry an egg out here."

"Not quite hot enough for that," Tifa quipped. "Did want to try it one time though."

"Give it a shot." Aeris threw her jacket into the buggy and tied her hair up higher.

"No eggs."

"Aw." Aeris pouted. She glanced around. "I would offer to get some for this but-"

"Save your strength," Barret rumbled.

"Yeah, yeah." She wandered back to the engine and winced. "At least it'll be cool when night comes."

"And with it will come many more monsters," Nanaki murmured.

A collective groan rose from all but one party member. Yuffie struggled into a sitting position. "Hope no Shinra. Can't think about fending off Shinra right now. I mean... If they capture us they'd put us in the cells. Indoors. Shinra has air conditioning. Right?" Tifa nodded.

"We are not giving into Shinra." Aeris let out a sigh. "We just need a distraction."

"How about dinner?" Tifa glanced around at the others. "We're stuck here for now so why not?"

Aeris grimaced. "I had hoped we would get some better supplies by then." She shoved her bag back into the vehicle.

Tifa grinned. "I had something else in mind; a cook out."

"Aren't we lacking meat?" Barret jabbed a thumb at the buggy. "I know Dio gave us his finest cheap supplies, but- There ain't no fridge in there, and I don't think I want to risk anything that's been in that heat all this time."

"I was thinking we could get something more fresh. There's a few tasty species in the desert-" She broke off as Yuffie groaned.

"That is still far too much like fighting Shinra."

"Not you." Tifa winked at Yuffie. "How about the man with no heat issues?"

Cloud blinked at her when she smiled at him. "Uh, sure. I'm not entirely sure what the best to get is?"

"Guess I need to go with you. Try and stay cool, okay guys?" Avalanche made some half-hearted acknowledgements, Yuffie flopping back onto the ground. They wandered from the buggy. Tifa nudged Cloud with her hip. "I have to admit, I'm a bit surprised. I figured SOLDIER would have some kind of survival training. And if not that, then at least as a result of the mercenary work."

Cloud frowned. "I did. Or-" His frown deepened. "I should have done. Must have gotten out of it somehow." He shook his head. "Would have been handy." He smiled at her. "At least you know what to do. Glad you came with me." One of his rare smiles; since their reuniting Cloud had seemed to strive for stoicism all the time. His smiles were far more appealing, far more like him. Far more natural. As always the thought seemed to drive her to the precipice of questions without clear answers and worries. "Hey, how about that?" He pointed and snapped her out of her reverie.

A monster slunk across the ground nearby. Not poisonous and pretty tasty if Tifa remembered right. "Perfect. Let's go, Cloud!"


	2. Sea Battle

The land slid away behind them as the Tiny Bronco made its way across the channel separating the Eastern continent from Wutai. The mood was buoyant, despite nuisance problems like having utterly lost Sephiroth's trail. The man had indicated he was travelling beyond Mount Nibel; the attempt to follow lead to a confusing mess of circumstances - and Cid. Winding up in Wutai was more a result of ocean currents, but Barret had muttered to Tifa his suspicion their arrival there was not wholly accidental. Impossible to dismiss fully, but Yuffie was contrite and, for now, on her best behaviour. Whether the result of her abduction by Don Corneo, or whatever secretive words passed between Yuffie and her father, Tifa could not be certain.

In any case, Yuffie had insisted she was re-devoted to Avalanche's cause – and the group was not fussy; personal revenge on Rufus Shinra, opposed to the company bearing his name, a vendetta against their resurrected elite SOLDIER, or simply accompanying them to seek knowledge. All of them welcomed by Cloud. That their ranks had swelled to nine individuals made travelling on the Tiny Bronco a risky proposition. Avalanche spread out to most of the surfaces and held on as best they could. Cid had the most comfortable seat in the cockpit, the one able to at least nudge the plane in the right direction.

How best to now pick up Sephiroth's trail? Not something the group had discussed, but something they needed to consider. The thought of confronting him sent a shiver down Tifa's spine, despite the bright sunlight beating down on them. Seeing him on the ship and in the cramped laboratory beneath the Shinra mansion a daunting experience. To keep seeking him out like this- But where Sephiroth went, Cloud went. And Cloud insisted Sephiroth was a greater risk to the Planet than Shinra. He remained always anxious to get moving; now sat forward, staring out to sea. Looking for land? Perhaps.

A thin trail of smoke drifted up from the cockpit. Tifa started- And stopped as a now familiar smell drifted past her; Cid was smoking. Again. She wrinkled her nose and shuffled along the wing and towards the centre. The move helped a little, but did put her in the more crowded part. Cait Sith took up more space than any of the rest of them, but without risking serious damage to the cat's moogle, there was little anyone could do. The robot was inert, the consciousness animating it elsewhere. Still curious as to who could operate such a creation. And how-

Another question for the pile. Aeris was leafing through one of the comic-like volumes Yuffie had insisted on buying before departing her homeland; trying to figure out the language or simply looking at the pictures? Yuffie conversely was intently flipping through another volume- What was she reading to make her cheeks flush? Tifa opened her mouth when Cid grunted. "Problem?"

"Dunno." Tifa inched her way forward and stared down into the cockpit. Cid was staring at the instrument panel. "Thought I got an odd reading. Sea shallower than expected." He shook his head. "Must have been some fish or a reef or-"

He cut off as the Tiny Bronco rocked, panicking Avalanche members grabbing for whatever handhold they could find. Something surged up from beneath the water. Something red. A panicked question died on Tifa's lips; the logo of the Shinra corporation was clear on the prow. Cid uttered a stream of profanities, wrenching the controls to steer them away. The plane moved at a sluggish pace in the water. Any chance this was the Turks? That their fleeting truce might hold?

Hope faded as the top-hatch of the submarine opened and a troop commander emerged. "Identify yourselves," he called.

"Act casual," Tifa murmured, not daring to glance around.

"We're just out for a sail," Cid said. He stood up and leant against the side of the cockpit. "'fraid I left my ID back home." The man scrutinised him and called something below. Shinra troops flocked onto the deck. "Hey, it was an accident."

"Your identity is not of concern; you are in possession of a Shinra transport vessel. You will surrender it immediately and turn yourselves in for questioning."

"Told ya boss this here plane is mine," Cid snapped. Tifa closed her eyes. So much for talking their way out of this. "He ain't getting this one as well."

The commander nodded. "Very well. Fire at will."

Avalanche was by now well practiced at surprise attacks in their travels. Before the first gunshot, Vincent had raised a succession of barriers between the submarine and the Tiny Bronco. Barret's gun-arm whirred to life and began its staccato blasting of bullets towards the troops. Cid wrenched the controls, slowly turning the vessel away. Vincent tracked the movement, throwing up new barriers as the remainder of the group prepared magic. Excepting Cait Sith; somehow the robot was still sat vacantly in the middle of the drama.

Aeris and Tifa both sent a volley of ice towards the submarine; Yuffie heaved a fireball in the same direction. Both struck home, eliminating a few troopers (over the side and burned to crisp), but there were more to replace them and they shifted to gain better cover. Nanaki closed his good eye and a bolt of lightning burst out of the clear sky, narrowly missing the submarine, smashing into the sea with a crackling fizz. "Keep it up!" Cid yelled as he set the Tiny Bronco moving away from the submarine.

"We're never going to lose them like this" Cloud let loose another fireball.

"If you've got a better plan, I'm all ears," Cid shot back.

"Guess I should give it a shot." Yuffie snickered clutching a red materia and focusing on it.

"What is-"

"Tifa!" Cloud yelled. Something slammed into her and she fell. There was the sensation of something warm around her waist. Water slammed against her, around her and enveloped her. Tifa blinked, the salt water stung her eyes. Below was an immensity of water, the depths lost in gloom. Beside her was the huge hull of the submarine and above was the tiny form of Cid's plane. Cloud sank beside her, his arm around her. Had he saved her from a shot?

No time to think about the implications; something was rising up out of the depths, a shimmering, coiling form. What fresh horror was this? Tifa flailed, trying to turn over. The Tiny Bronco might not withstand a blow from the creature, but at least she would not be in the water when it arrived-

Too close; it moved beneath her feet and Tifa hurtled out of the water, Cloud by her side, his arms still around her. Up and up they went; it was all she could do to hang on to the segments between the scales. The submarine dropped below them, and the creature – whatever it was – loomed above it. The Shinra troops on deck panicked and concentrated all their fire on the creature. It seemed to make no difference. The creature quivered, the lower parts of its body, coiling and recoiling. A surge of water blasted up from beneath it, washing over the submarine and forcing it back down under the water. The submarine did not resurface.

Yuffie let out a whoop; the creature collapsed beneath Tifa, leaving a familiar dispersing mass of blue light in its wake. She fell – again – and hit the water. Cloud's grip loosened and he floundered beside her. It took some time to help Cloud back to the surface. "What was that?" Tifa called.

Aeris and Barret leant over the side of the Tiny Bronco holding their hands out to Cloud and Tifa. Aeris smiled. "Yuffie's new toy."

"You got a new summon?" Tifa eyed the Ninja as Aeris hauled her onboard, Barret hefting Cloud up. "And didn't tell us."

Yuffie shrugged. "Helped out though." She pulled a red materia from somewhere. "May I introduce the mighty Leviathan…."


	3. Visiting the Beach

Aeris swallowed the last dregs of water, scrunched the bottle up and fanned her face with one hand. Where was the sea breeze? She flopped onto her back, willing her skin to cool in the still air. Nothing happened. She had already removed all the clothing acceptable to perceived modesty on the beach. Anything more was going to invite unwanted attention and/or strong encouragement to leave. Wait. Some people had no problem wandering beaches nude. Was there such a place, somewhere more secluded place nearby? Who would know?

The nearest stranger was too far away across burning sand and she dismissed the idea. Too much work. Plus stripping completely was unlikely to make much difference at this point. She was already wearing little and in the shade of the beach umbrella and still boiling.

The glorious blue tide crashed against the sand nearby. Tempting. Too tempting. Crystal clear, cool water close at hand. "No good. I'm going swimming," Aeris announced to the group and sprang to her feet. A quick dart across the burning sand, her focus fixed on reaching the water. Or the damp sand left in the wake of the tide sliding back down the beach. No, she needed to get into the shallows. Pain, pain, pain- Should she turn back? How far had she gone? No. She had to do this.

Her foot plunged into the cooler sand, momentum carrying her forward. Aeris splashed into the sea, the water swirling around her ankles. Bliss. The sun was still scorching on her back and shoulders, the cool of the water not offsetting it enough. She strode ever deeper, the water now reaching her knees. Deep enough. Aeris dove forward into the next wave and into a wonderful rush of cold. The sea enveloped her super-heated flesh and she swam along the bottom, the debilitating heat gone.

Aeris surfaced, flailing a little and brushing hair out of her eyes; she trod water and tied a ponytail. Perfect. No longer boiling on the sand. Wonderful out here in the water. Did life get any better? Well, some company would be nice - and everyone else was still back on the beach. Shame. Maybe someone would venture out later-

At the umbrella, Cloud got to his feet and headed towards her. She smiled; she would not be alone out here.


	4. Starship Titanic

The adverts had ended; now for the trailers. A familiar corporate logo appeared to a certain amount of hissing and jeers from the audience. Shinra films inc. The cinema screen filled with stars and the viewpoint panned down to reveal the Planet along the bottom of the screen. A variety of space-stations and other futuristic craft hung in orbit. The Planet pretty good from this vantage point. "It was to be the biggest endeavour in human history…" The familiar voice-over from all big-budgeted epics. Deep, portentous words. The screen faded to black and faded up as the viewpoint skimmed across a vast grey surface, marked here and there with weld lines and rivets.

"A colony vessel sent out into deep space to find a new home." The view of the grey surface switched to a vast milling crowd, a vast spaceship looming in the background. People were hugging, kissing, laughing, crying. There was a general drift towards the spaceship, small craft rising up from some point in the distance and zipping towards the other vessel. Another viewpoint switch – inside maybe – showed clusters of people entering rooms with luggage or wandering through corridors. An unexpectedly familiar looking man with blond, spiky hair and blue eyes caught the eye of another unexpectedly familiar looking woman with red eyes and long black hair.

"Two souls will find each other on the voyage." The blond man was staring wistfully into the distance, and glimpsed looking towards the other woman. Some time seemed to pass and now the two of them were wandering along one of the ship's decks in the night-time, the view beyond them filled with stars. The woman tentatively reached out and took the man's hand. Another fade and the two of them kissed.

"But one enemy stands in the way of their happiness." The slow, gentle orchestral music cut-off, replaced with something more dramatic, a faster frenzied mix of string instruments. A control room of some kind filled with red light, uniformed staff darting back and forth and relaying panicked orders. An older man with a beard entered the room and demanded to know what was happening. One of his subordinates started to reply and stopped. The captain demanded an answer. A new glare built behind the subordinate and the captain stared in increasing horror at something beyond.

The viewpoint switched again. The man and woman dressed as they had in the previous scene were holding hands and staring up towards the audience's viewpoint in a similar horrified look. "He failed before. But now he is back to ensure humanity can never escape his wrath."

The camera cut to a grinning man, his face framed with long, grey hair. The viewpoint withdrew showing Sephiroth – or at least an actor with more than a passing resemblance to the SOLDIER – dressed in his infamous garb; it also showed the ugly, angry red of Meteor hovering behind him. His grin widened. "This time he'll finish the job!" Sephiroth rushed forward, the glowing form of Meteor swooping over the viewpoint.

The music switched again to a thunderous electronic beat. Quick glimpses of fire on-board the ship, dune-buggies rushing across mud-flats. One shot had a tower – not dissimilar to the spaceship before – jutting up and out of the landscape. The man and woman before struggled through shaking corridors, debris fell from the ceilings. The music grew ever more intense, the images flicking quicker and quicker. The man and woman were holding hands but leaning away from each other. Something forced them apart; the woman managed an anguished "Cloud!" before the screen went black.

A stylised logo appeared. "Starship Titanic," the voice-over intoned. "Coming this summer."

Tifa opened her mouth to reply- One more scene – the sting in the tail – a cabin with a door clogged with debris. Something banged on it, the sound barely audible over the cacophony of other disasters befalling the starship interior. The door opened a crack. Another heave and another slightly wider opening. A hand reached through and forced the door wider still. A woman with brunette hair, green eyes and a pink dress crawled through the opening. "Not this time," she said staring off-camera. The screen went black, the credits super-imposed over the top. The author of the film was no surprise – Leno Sinclair.

"Do you want to sue Reno or should I?" Tifa sighed.


	5. Pursuit

Not much longer.

The sun was low on the horizon, the sky turning orange. Any other time, this would have been the perfect weather to admire the sunset. Tifa had no time; she and Cloud crouched in the undergrowth near the edge of a cluster of trees. Not far from Nibelheim. The thought of going back, of finding what remained still fazed Tifa every time she was unable to wrest her thoughts away from the subject. There was a chance not everyone had perished. The town razed but not destroyed, new buildings in place of those Sephiroth destroyed. But even in the best case scenario, there would be nothing for her or Cloud there. Father was dead and Cloud's mother was unlikely to have survived the inferno that consumed his home. Hopefully someone had moved father's body, given him a burial next to her mother.

Or perhaps that was the wrong way to look at it now – knowing all they did thanks to the visit to Cosmo Canyon. The grave that held her mother's remains; the lifeless body she found as she chased Sephiroth up Mount Nibel- If she believed Bugenhagen, neither were her parents any longer. The spark that animated both had returned to the Planet and become part of the Lifestream. There was some comfort there, the chance to be reborn in some capacity, to pass from life to death and return. But at the cost of their memories.

Helpful for the loss of her family and friends; less comforting for the here and now. She could not fall yet. Not when there were so many questions, so much she still wanted to do. Tifa held her breath and listened. Faint whisper of Cloud's breathing, the forest around them shifting this way and that in the faint stirrings of the wind- The distant rumble of a motor? Tifa strained, leaning forward. The wind shifted, blowing past her and flicking her hair around her ears. She brushed it back as quickly as possible.

Something. Maybe a shout. "They're here," Cloud said, staring towards the rise blocking them from the rest of the valley. Tifa's heart skipped a beat.

"How far?"

Cloud jerked his head around. "A mile or two. Close."

Too close. Staying low, Tifa picked her way through the undergrowth and deeper into the forest. No sound of larger predators in here – the last thing they needed now; getting caught up in a skirmish with the local fauna. Cloud trailed after her, the gloom deepening as the sun continued to sink and the canopy became thicker. Despite the need to put as much distance from their previous position as they could, Tifa was unable to resist the impulse to look back. Nothing in sight. No sounds of motors or marching feet over the soft rustle of the undergrowth against their legs. Thankfully it was not too dry; the number of dry sticks underfoot should be minimal – little risk of giving their position away.

Another look back. Nothing. How much further? There was always the chance- A Shinra truck heaved into view, unsteady on the terrain. A small squad of infantry arrived. The company halted; behind them the sun slid towards the horizon. Tifa stopped and ducked deeper into the vegetation; Cloud likewise stilled beside her. Hard to dare breath; there was a good distance between them and the troops, but her frantic, shallow gasps seemed to roar like an enraged Behemoth.

What was taking so long? How did they keep tracking them? The unexpected run-in with the a division of the Shinra infantry earlier had lead to Avalanched scattering into small groups. Who was and wasn't together was not clear. They had a standing arrangement to restrict PHS use except in emergencies; no one was sure if Shinra had the capacity to intercept the calls. Once they were away from the troops, they would try and round everyone back up – but to do so required them surviving the present. Tifa and Cloud had fled together, dogged by seemingly the same division of troops no matter how far they ran. Were they the sole target or was it only one of a number pursuing each subdivision of the group?

Impossible to say. Darkness should help them move with less chance of detection, but would introduce new obstacles as they tried to navigate by pitiful natural light. The lights on the van burst into life, two glaring points of light in the woods. Tifa ducked lower, ruining her eyesight by staring back towards the source, watching for the silhouette of a trooper approaching. "We might need to run."

"Or we can ambush them when they get close."

"Risky. We'll end up surrounded." Cloud nodded and Tifa tensed. Ahead the motor increased in volume and abruptly the lights swung away. The movement caught troopers hurrying past the van and away from the woods. All sign of Shinra was gone. Tifa retained her shallow breathing and counted a minute in her head. Nothing. Another minute. Still a chance the Turks would step out of the shadows, all of this some absurd orchestrated trap. Nothing.

"I think we lucked out." Tifa let out a laugh; Cloud's grin was barely visible in the gloom, but it was there. Tifa let the tension go from her legs and flopped onto the ground.

"We should get going." Cloud fidgeted.

"A minute. Too tense." Tifa rolled onto her back and stared up at the canopy. Cloud copied her. They needed to get moving, needed to find the others. But for now, after sunset – her and Cloud alone – was a comfort she could not help but indulge now the danger was past.


	6. Titan Shrugged

Junon was not as they expected when Avalanche arrived. Huge pillars of smoke rose up from the upper plate; the lower city seemed deserted save for a collection of sloppily dressed guards near the lift. None of them were wearing Shinra uniforms at least. "Did something happen?" Cloud asked.

"Yeah." The guard grinned at him. "Shinra up and left."

"They… what?"

"Where you guys been?" The guard glanced between the assembled group.

"Camping," Aeris replied brightly.

"Camping, huh? You don't look like the extreme sports types…" The girl shuddered. "Guess you didn't hear about Sephiroth's return."

Tifa flinched. "We heard something about it before we left Midgar. He killed the President."

"Old one yeah. Then he made a speech," the guard said.

"A speech?" Cloud was wary. "What kind of speech?"

"Well." She glanced behind him to the elevator. "Someone up top-side might have a copy if you want to hear it but-" She shivered. "Went on for three hours or so. Most people gave up after about ten minutes, but turns out the Shinra management types thought it was wonderful. Something about how either you're a producer or a parasite, and if you rely on someone else to give you stuff you're a parasite and it's too late for the world…"

"That sounds… horrible," Barret muttered.

"Hard to stomach, that's for sure. But what seems to have happened is the Shinra execs really dug it – and they decided to withdraw from the world."

"They- What?" Nanaki's question got him a quizzical look from the guard.

"They don't feel appreciated enough or we're a burden or-" The girl frowned. "Hard to remember he just would not shut up. Point is, they've gone on strike or something – and they'll come back when they feel appreciated. We're either supposed to die off or hole up like them."

Tifa stared up to the plate. All this had happened while they were trekking through grassland and the mythril mines? Did the Turks know? "Was the speech popular?"

The girl scratched her head. "Well, put it this way. Morning after we found the Shinra infantry had mobilised and cleaned out. Heideggar with them. From what we heard out of Midgar, Rufus and the rest are missing too. The Mako reactors were shut down and they've wrecked the controls so we can't get them restarted."

Cloud held his hand up. "Wait. Are you telling me that Sephiroth has caused Shinra to stop processing Mako?"

"Basically." The girl jerked her head back. "Not sure about anywhere else, but they're offline in Midgar, Kalm and Junon. So, yeah?"

"We won." Barret frowned at the ground. "All that effort, all that time- And he just talked them out of it?" He pushed his way to the front of the group. "What are you using instead?"

"Whatever we've got. We've got old oil and coal generators-"

"We need to do something about those." Barret muttered something under his breath. "What about solar?"

The girl shrugged. "You'll need to talk to them in charge up there." She glanced around at them all. "You going up?"

"Give us a minute." Tifa ushered the group away from the lift. On the shoreline a dolphin rounded a cliff, a girl riding on its back. She leapt off to splash in the shallows. "What do we do?"

"We need to find Sephiroth." Cloud's attention was on something at the base of the Junon cliffs.

"Not sure why. You said he was the greatest threat to the Planet, but he seems to have saved it." Barret folded his arms.

"I still… I still need to confront him…" Cloud muttered.

"Should we split up then?" Aeris glanced around the group. "Nanaki still wants to get home – and I would like to know what Cosmo Canyon can tell me about my past."

Barret was nodding. "I think I should go back to Midgar. Sounds like they might need someone to make sure they don't repeat Shinra's mistakes. Or try and get the reactors working again."

Aeris glanced at Tifa. "How about you?"

Cloud. Too much still to learn and find out there. Nothing for her back in Midgar. "I'm going to stick with Cloud for now. Provide back-up." Aeris grinned and winked at her.

"Yuffie?" Tifa blinked and glanced around. "Yuffie?" The ninja was creeping off towards the lift.

"Oh, I, uh. I'm just going to check this place out." She was grinning a bit too much. "I'll see you guys around."

"She's going to rob the city blind," Aeris murmured.

* * *

Cloud and Tifa followed an odd route North, working off rumours and vague sightings of Shinra aircraft and convoys headed somewhere unknown. As time passed they grew closer to each other, the lies Tifa told on their reuniting forgotten as they had fun in each other's company. The two are now dating.

Aeris and Nanaki made it back to Cosmo Canyon where Nanaki learned the truth of his father, and Aeris learned of her lonely Cetra heritage. Unfazed she continued her journey through the world.

Barret took control of Midgar with the help of a Shinra exec named Reeve. The remnants of the Shinra science divisions changed to focus on studying alternate energy solutions.

Yuffie robbed everything of value from the Shinra exec suites in Junon and absconded with a cargo-ship filled with materia. She was last seen headed for Wutai.

* * *

Rufus had to remember it was early days in the Promised Land. While tempting to conclude they had come too early in the plan – the foundations of Neo-Midgar still not laid – he had to believe in Sephiroth's words, his ideals, the clear vision of a perfect world. So while the troops laboured to construct the new city in the far North, he could feel content with how things would be in the end. How the world outside would collapse without his company and the executive ranks. How a new, pristine world would be ready for him to rule once the collapse was complete.

He shouldn't complain. Not here in this wonderland of materia and mako that threatened to burst from the ground. But there were more tremors than he would expect from the "promised land". Little things he should not worry about.

An hour later, the first of the new Mako reactors came online. The increased tremors were surely nothing more than the mako flows adjusting. The tremors refused to dissipate and it was clear they were in the grip of a full-blown earthquake. Before there was a chance of fleeing to safety, the ground split and a gigantic green hand emerged to pulverise the mako reactor. The materia ground shifted, cracked and split, sending Rufus – sending all of Sephiroth's acolytes – into a yawning chasm below.

Emerald Weapon – the threat from the mako reactor dealt with – returned to its slumbering posture, ready for another threat to the Planet in the future.


End file.
